Bulk moduli of the silicon and germanium fullerenes Si60 and Ge60

The bulk moduli of the silicon and germanium fullerenes Si60 and Ge60 of different symmetries have been calculated using the density functional theory method. It has been shown that the bulk moduli of metastable fullerenes of the highest symmetry Ih have maximum values and exceed those of the corresponding bulk crystal structures by a factor of 1.5–1.7. The most stable fullerenes have the symmetry C1 and lower bulk moduli. The bulk moduli of the silicon and germanium fullerenes Si60 and Ge60 exceed the bulk moduli of the corresponding crystal structures by factors of 1.44 and 1.38–1.40, respectively.